For information only – not an official document
UNIS/SGSM/1623
25 September 2026
On this International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons, we face a stark reality: the threat of nuclear catastrophe is immediate and growing.
The lesson of history is clear. Nuclear weapons provide no lasting security. Their use would inflict consequences that no nation and no people should ever endure.
Yet rising tensions, deepening mistrust, expanding military competition and the modernization of nuclear arsenals cast a dangerous shadow over our common future.
The failure of recent multilateral efforts to advance nuclear disarmament and reinforce non-proliferation commitments has demonstrated the difficulty of consensus in a divided world.
But we cannot allow setbacks to weaken our resolve.
It’s time to choose dialogue over division, diplomacy over confrontation, and disarmament over destruction. States that possess nuclear weapons must honour their disarmament obligations and commit to the total elimination of nuclear weapons.
Let us act with urgency and courage and build a safer, more peaceful world for present and future generations.
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The thirteenth session of the Conference of the Parties (COP) to the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime (UNTOC) will be held from 19 to 23 October 2026 at the Vienna International Centre, Austria.
The Fifteenth United Nations Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice concluded today with more than 60 countries agreeing time-bound actions to strengthen criminal justice responses, expand access to justice and improve international cooperation to tackle global crime threats.
The Fifteenth United Nations Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice opened today with the adoption of the Abu Dhabi Declaration, a forward-looking global framework to strengthen international criminal justice cooperation against fast-evolving crime challenges and exploitation of digital technologies.
"It's time to choose dialogue over division, diplomacy over confrontation, and disarmament over destruction. States that possess nuclear weapons must honour their disarmament obligations and commit to the total elimination of nuclear weapons." — António Guterres
